'Video of the Week' Page

Each week, I'll be adding a 'Video of the Week' to the main page, and, depending on its nature, give a technical analysis of the rowing, or explain what it is that motivates me about the video. This week, the VOTW is another race from the 2006 World Championships at Eton -- perhaps it's a combination of missing the UK and anticipating the 2012 Olympics (which are to take place on that course) that has me referencing this particular regatta so much. The race here is the Men's 4-, and the effort is impressive from the Americans, who have been struggling to find a combination outside the VIII for some time. The crew to watch, however, is the British four, who would go on to win the Beijing Olympics, and who make the most of their power by being extremely efficient with their use of energy.

Trending posts this month

Thoughts on the 2014 Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, Following the OUBC Trial VIIIs

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The 2013/2014 Trial VIIIs races are now in the books, and the anticipation is already beginning to mount for the main events, scheduled for Sunday, 30 March at 3:00pm GMT (women) and 6 April at 6:00pm GMT (men). For many on the outside, however, the Oxbridge men's and women's Boat Races appear to be something of a foregone conclusion. Oxford are, to put it bluntly, comparatively stacked on both counts. And, judging from the lineups that the men raced over the weekend, they know it—they appear to have raced two mixed eights (splitting up their Olympians) against one another for more of a sparring session than a true selection piece. Let's take a closer look at the Oxford lineups, shall we?
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The 30 Best Rowing Coaches of All Time, Part 3: The Top 10

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The top 10 best rowing coaches, including guess who (Photo © Iain Weir / Rowing Photography ) It's time for the third and final part of our 3-part series on the best of the best in the rowing coaching ranks. These coaches not only command respect based on performance, but have also shown the ability to adapt to new circumstances, build dynasties, and ultimately help shape the trajectory of rowing as a sport. Honestly, it would be easy to extend this series into 10 more posts... But we wouldn't do that to you. As we've said before, the hope is that the following may serve to educate and spark discussion, as both an appreciation of history and of the coaching craft. Also note: As we stated in Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, there are few women in this list, but that is a reflection of a general underrepresentation of women in the head coaching ranks in our sport—and indeed (as has been well documented ) a growing number of NCAA sports in the United States. ...
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"I Row Crew" — Rowing in 'The Social Network'

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Like many of the rowing faithful, I've been keeping up with the saga penned by Dan Boyne about the filming of the rowing scenes in David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin's The Social Network , and I must say I had high hopes going into the film. The first problem I encountered: the phrase, "I row crew." It was uttered so many times before anyone "rowed crew" on the water that I had trouble buying any of it later. It's understandable that the character of Mark Zuckerberg makes that mistake, since he has no idea about the sport. But when the Winklevoss twins themselves utter the phrase several times, one begins to wonder where Boyne was when these lines were not being chopped or changed. Seriously, who says that? As far as the actual rowing goes, the first scene, which has the twins out training in a pair along with the rest of the Harvard squad, is not all bad — it just ends that way. The line, "Those guys are freakin' fast" is certainly every b...
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ACE Series, Part 11: Henley Royal Regatta Begins with a Draw

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Photo: Hannah Wagner The Henley Royal Regatta draw took place Saturday afternoon, in a room with no air conditioning. Fate and the stewards smiled upon some crews, and seemed to laugh at others ( Cornell vs. Syracuse in the Temple Challenge Cup on day one—one assumes that had St. Joe’s or Drexel come this year, they’d have gotten Temple first). Not many things in life are decided by a Commander of the British Empire in a blue blazer with five Olympic gold medals picking your name out of a goblet, but Henley isn’t like a lot of things in life. First off, the Temple. The wording of eligibility used to exclude anyone that made a "blue"—i.e., made one of the top two eights of the Oxford-Cambridge boat race—or the American equivalent. This was typically enforced as no one from an EARC or PAC-12 first varsity eight. That was replaced with "won a U23 medal."* Never say never, but it's now conceivable that any of the top American collegiate crews with j...
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